Hedge funds badly lagged the broader markets in the first month of 2011, according to early figures from one industry index.

The HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index was up just 0.56% last month, less than a quarter of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index's 2.26%. Distressed securities funds led the way at 1.87%, followed by convertible arbitrage funds at 1.64% and relative value arbitrage funds at 1.12%.

At least three strategies suffered a losing month. Systematic diversified funds plummeted 2.58% on the month. Equity hedge and equity market-neutral funds each took a more modest hit, losing 0.17% and 0.36%, respectively.

From the current issue of

The ratio calendar combination spread couples two ratio calendar spreads, one using calls and the other using puts. The call strike prices are higher than the put strike prices. This strategy is complex and profit is limited, but if a high amount of time value is involved in the short positions, that profit can be substantial and risk is still limited.